1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to hosiery for wear by men, women or children including surgical hose.
2. Description of Prior Art
A form of hosiery frequently used especially by girls and women, known as tights, comprises two leg portions in the form of ladies stockings, the upper ends of which are carried up into a single body portion covering the crotch and having a part encircling the wearer's body and termination at its top portion in a waistband which grips the wearer's waistline and prevents the garment slipping down.
One disadvantage of such tights is that if one leg portion is damaged as by laddering in a knitted material or is torn, the garment becomes useless at least for smart wear. Also to put the tights on, especially when made of elastic material, as for surgical use to give support to the lower parts of the wearer's body, the wearer has to put each leg portion on in turn; many wearers of elastic tights are suffering from some disability such as varicose veins and frequently are of advancing years so that they have difficulty, particularly in drawing the second leg portion on to their leg and also in drawing the body portion up over their thighs and over their body. This is particularly emphasised when the body portion is elastic to support the abdomen of a wearer suffering from abdominal varicose veins for example.
The main object of the present invention is to provide an article of hosiery for male or female use in which these disadvantages are reduced.